Siddharamaiah to inaugurate 108th Jayanthi Mahotsava of Jagadguru Dr. Sri Shivarathri Rajendra Mahaswamiji at Suttur Mutt in city tomorrow.

Mysore/Mysuru: Chief Minister Siddharamaiah began his three-day visit to Mysuru this morning. He started from Bengaluru by road at 9 am and arrived at the Government Guest House, Nazarbad at 11 am where he was accorded a Guard of Honour as per the protocol.

District Minister Dr. H.C. Mahadevappa, Deputy Commissioner Dr. K.V. Rajendra, City Police Commissioner Ramesh Banoth, Superintendent of Police Seema Latkar and other officers were present to receive the CM.

After formalities and speaking to the waiting reporters on various topics, Siddharamaiah headed towards the Zilla Panchayat building where he chaired the KDP (Karnataka Development Programmes) meeting. Senior officers of all the Departments were present along with files and data on their phones.

KDP meeting was attended by MP Pratap Simha, MLAs Tanveer Sait, G.D. Harish Gowda, Anil Chikkamadu, T.S. Srivatsa,  MLCs A.H. Vishwanath, Marithibbegowda, C.N. Manjegowda and Dr. D. Thimmaiah. The meeting aimed to address important matters within the district.

 Speaking to reporters before the KDP meeting, the CM expressed his enthusiasm for the upcoming programmes in his hometown Mysuru as his Government has completed 100 days in Office. He highlighted the launch of the 4th pre-poll guarantee Gruha Lakshmi scheme on Aug. 30.

Over a lakh women beneficiaries from Mysuru, Mandya, Chamarajanagar and Kodagu districts will attend the mega event planned at Maharaja’s College Grounds, he said.

The CM said that there is no proposal on taking up cloud-seeding despite many districts facing rainfall deficit. As a usual practice during dry monsoon season, the State takes a decision on cloud-seeding as per the Union Government’s guidelines and the Meteorology Department’s inputs. “Cloud-seeding has not been successful in anywhere and there is no use of it. We are prepared to face a drought-like situation,” Siddharamaiah said.

On the plans of many MLAs to jump from other parties to Congress, Siddharamaiah said, “Anyone who comes to our side is welcome as we believe in inclusivity,” he said. The CM stressed the importance of unity and called upon all to accept and embrace the principles of his party.

As he was speaking to reporters, the CM also took a satirical tone while discussing the political landscape. He questioned the current position of the Opposition parties, particularly the BJP in the State. “Where is the BJP now? It has turned into a minority. They cannot even name the Leader of the Opposition and never before such a situation rose in Karnataka and it is an unfortunate development,” he quipped.